Child of Darkness
by RyuDraconis
Summary: Llyod has a disturbing dream the night after he returns from his journey, what does it mean? The answers will lead him down familiar paths, and old wounds will be reopened... SheenaLlyod Chp 2 up! Read and review, flames WILL be mocked, then laughed at.
1. The Child of Cruxis

Child of Darkness

By: RyuDraconis

_Ok all, here it is, my very first Takes of Symphonia fic. I finished the game recently, so its still there in my mind. If I make any mistakes, pardon! Anyways this will be a Sheena/Lloyd fic eventually. So, anyways here it is!_

Chp. 1: Return of Cruxis

_"At the Eve of Cruxis, a new Light shines. Borne on Angel Wings,_

_his wrath is mine."_

_Prophecies of Mithos, Book of Cruxis_

It was a cool night at a small house on the outskirts of the Iselia forest, and upstairs with the blankets wrapped around him as a cool breeze drifted in from his open window, Llyod Irving slept soundly. It had been nearly a year since the world Tree Yggdrasil had been restored and the worlds of Sylvarant and Tethe'Alla reunited. He had just returned from his journey across the world in search of the Exspheres, accursed technology that used the lives of humans as its catalyst of creation. It had been long and hard, but he had eventually succeeded in some small degree to round up what Exspheres he could find and destroy them, freeing the minds of the people that were trapped inside of them. His good friend Sheena Fujibayashi had taken time away from her new responsibilities as chief of Mizuho Village to help, and he had enjoyed her company, but eventually she had to return. He had dropped her off just the other day with his Rheiard, and now was sleeping soundly, nearly exhausted from his long journey. And so Llyod dreamed.

* * *

_His dreams floated around him, memories of his companions and their times together as they had first set out to regenerate the world, the save it from the evil of the Chosen's journey, a fallen heroes mad desire to return his dead sister to life. Suddenly the bubbles of the memories collapsed and fell apart, and Llyod found himself standing on a plain, the great Tree Yggdrasil before him. The sky was blood red again, just like the night Derris-Kharlan had appeared in the sky._

_  
Suddenly the silence of the dream was broken and he heard Sheena cry out, "Lloyd! Help! G...gaah!" _

_Turning quickly on his heel, Llyod drew his twin sword, the Material Blades, weapons that had been given to him by Dirk and Kratos upon his release of Origin. What he saw next made him take a few steps back, his face a mix of anger and sorrow. There, before him lay his friends sprawled on the ground, dead, the blood pooling about them and mixing. Not seeing Sheena among them, he turned to see where her voice had come from only to see her fall to the ground, a sword stabbed through her chest. A figure with long blonde hair, white long clothes, and dark red and orange wings hovered over her, laughing, before quickly drawing its sword from her. _

_Llyod let out a small gasp and felt his limbs go numb as he quickly cried out, "Sheena, NO!" Turning he then growled angrily at the figure, between squeezed together eyes, as he fought back tears at the scene before him._

_It was dark, and he was unable to see the face between the tears and the shadows that closed in around them, plunging them into darkness. As the figure licked at its sword, it then said in a quiet voice that resounded with hate and madness, "Foolish human…you do not deserve to be of Cruxis! You friends are dead by my hands…now Llyod Irving…your time has come…to die!"_

_Llyod breathed heavily then growled as he launched himself at the figure angrily, tears still clinging to his face, "Monster! You have gone too far!" His swords cut through the air swiftly as each attack lashed out at the figure, his blows fueled by his rage and sorrow. They hit home, as the figure seemed to make no effort to guard itself. Blood spattered to the ground as the figure took each cut, and swift slash of the sword, and even as Lloyd delivered a fast and quick thrust to pierce the figures body through, it did nothing to defend itself._

_Quickly pulling himself and his sword free of the figure, he watched as it collapsed to the ground. He still could not see the face, but, as it lay there on the ground, its blood pooling about it, it began laughing in a tone much like he remembered Mithos had._

_"Llyod, what's wrong?" it taunted, laughing maniacally, "Did I kill your precious little friends? Did I make you suffer? You're so pathetic…you couldn't even save them!"_

_"Shut up!" Llyod yelled back as he tried to fight back the pain and anguish in his voice. Suddenly his limbs went numb and he collapsed, breathing heavily, his body wracked with guilt as he sorrow spilled to the surface. The feeling felt like the time he thought his friends had died from the traps when he had gone to confront Mithos when he had stolen Colette's body. He didn't see the figure get up form the ground, blood still flowing freely from its wounds, its white tunic stained red by blood._

_Walking up to him it gloated happily, the madness still evident in its voice, "What's wrong Llyod? Can't live without your friends? Here let me remedy that situation for you!" Llyod watched as it brought its sword to its hand again, and for a second it glowed then changed and shifted its blade glowing blue and red and shifting to a crystalline form.. His eyes went wide as he recognized the blade. It was the Eternal Sword! Suddenly piercing pain filled his entire body as the Eternal Sword pierced through his chest, and the next thing he knew, he was falling, falling down into the darkness of the abyss. His last thought was "Everyone…I'll be with you soon…"_

* * *

Lloyd's eyes snapped open; as he sat up quickly in bed, sweat pouring down his face. Breathing heavily he groaned a little and muttered softly, "Just a dream." Rubbing his head he looked outside and saw the sun pouring in through his window and groaned. Another day meant back to school, and that meant more time with the buckets of water that Raine insisted he hold as a disciplinary measure. 

Sighing he managed to get up and out of bed, stretching as he did so, then went over to his closet to get changed. Pulling his red shirt and pants on then slinging the suspenders over them he looked at his hand and the Cruxis Crystal Exsphere that had been his mothers that resided upon it. "Mom…" he whispered slightly then closed his eyes. True, he said he wanted to get rid of all Exspheres but it didn't feel right for him to loose the one that kept him closer to his mother than anything. Not even Kratos' presence reminded him of the warmth and love his mother had given him. Sure he was his father, but he had also been a member of Cruxis and their enemy.

Suddenly a "Hey, Llyod!" with a cheerful voice broke him out of his thoughts and Llyod looked up, and grinned at his half-elf friend Genis. He and his sister Raine had come back to Iselia just a week before he and Noishe had come home. From what Llyod had heard from Dirk they had been rather successful in their own journey to get half-elves and humans to accept one another. There had been a few dissenters, but over all things had gone well. Half-Elves were now being seen more out in the open, Meltokio having repealed its anti-half elf laws being one of the major populaces. Though many from the Sylvarant towns and villages were still hesitant, the memory of the Desians and their Ranches and oppression still fresh in their mind.

"We had better go." Genis grinned, "or else your day dreaming will make us late…like it usually does, and you know how sis gets when you're late Llyod!"

"Don't remind me!" Llyod laughed back then slid on his gloves, boots, and twin swords of the Material Blades. "And I wasn't daydreaming!"

Genis smirked and narrowed his eyes and chuckled, "sure you weren't…I bet you spent most of your journey sleeping!"

"Shut it Genis!" Llyod shook his head and scowled at Genis. Genis was a good friend and a loyal companion but Llyod found his teasing sometimes rather annoying. His intellect however came from the fact that he could wield vast amounts of Magic and if he put his mind to it, he could be very formidable.

Genis just laughed then grinned and handed Llyod a sandwich, "I made it this morning, c'mon lets go!"

"Sure just lemme go say bye to dad ok?" he replied then walked downstairs. Calling out to Dirk, his adopted dwarf father, "Dad, I'm going to school now!"

Dirk walked over and smiled at his son then nodded, "Alright Lloyd, I'll see you later, and keep out of trouble, remember the Dwarven Vows!"

"Yeah, yeah I got it dad!" Llyod groaned as he closed the front door behind himself and Genis as he stepped out. True having a Dwarf for a father had its perks, he had learned most of his craftsman's skills from Dirk, but he really had a hard time always getting lectured about the Vows.

Leaving the house, he turned and looked over the two graves that were now erected next to one another. Sighing he winced slightly and tried not to think of Zelos Wilder, the man whom he had to kill in order to claim the Eternal Sword and enter the Tower of Salvation in search of Sheena, who had risked herself to keep him from being possessed by Mithos after Origins seal had been broken. He had trusted Zelos, and he had betrayed them, but, deep in his heart he wished he could have found another way to save Zelos.

Sighing a bit he then turned towards the stables and saw Noishe, still sleeping. Shaking his head he said to Genis, "and you think I'M lazy." Genis laughed as Llyod yelled, "Hey Noishe! C'mon we're going!" Noishe woke, stretched then let out a whine and trotted over to the two young men. Patting Noishe on the head Llyod smiled, "its ok boy, not many monsters out there now-a-days." Noishe let out another whine then followed Llyod and genis as they headed down the road and toward the path that led into the Iselia Forest.

Their trip was uneventful, as the number of monsters had decreased significantly since the Great Tree Yggdrasil was again watching over the world, its Mana flow abundant for everyone. Leaving Noishe at the edge of Iselia Llyod and Genis sprinted the rest of the way past the reconstruction of the village. A few people waved hello to them and they quickly waved back. Llyod groaned as he neared the school building as he saw the kids inside already sitting down for their lessons, "damn it we're late." He muttered.

Genis and Llyod quickly sprinted into the school building just as Raine was talking to the children about the great Kharlan war. Raine Sage folded her arms as she saw them come running in breathless and said coolly, "well, if it isn't Llyod, late as usual I see." She then smiled slightly at him, and he grinned and smiled back slightly at her, but then her look turned cool again, "well, you know what to do Mr. Irving."

He groaned then nodded, "yes ma'am" Before he headed over to the water pails he walked up to her and whispered quietly, "Professor, um, could we talk after school today? I had…a rather vivid dream last night…" He winced uncomfortably and his face creased in worry at the memory of the dream.

Raine saw the look of worry on his face, and knowing it took a lot to get this particular young man worried like that nodded and replied quietly back, "alright Llyod, we'll talk after school."

Turning to Genis she then said, "And you Genis, I expect some more arithmetic homework for you will make up for your tardiness." All she got from genis was a slight nod as he quickly found his seat next to Colette who was busy looking out the window dreamily, and sat down.

As Llyod hefted the pails of water, Colette seemed to snap out of her dreaminess and turned and smiled at Lloyd. He grinned at her and she smiled again happily, and then went back to letting Raine speak. Raine, who was too busy lecturing to notice, had her back to the class now and was writing down some information on the blackboard. Sighing he let his head relax, and he slowly found himself start nodding off as Raine began to lecture on the causes of the great Kharlan War.

Suddenly a commotion began to occur outside from the guards at the Northern entrance of town, which was right next to the school, and he could hear the guards calling for someone to get Raine. Next thing he knew a guard had come running in and said to the Professor, "Ms Raine, come outside quickly, someone's been hurt! It looks like someone from Mizuho!"

Raine nodded to the guard then picked up her Staff, which lay alongside the chalkboard. "Study by yourselves everyone, I'll be back in a moment!" Genis, Collete and Llyod looked at each other and then quickly sprinted outside as well, knowing that one of their friends came from Mizuho, Lloyd's buckets of water crashing to the ground fastest of them all.

As they got outside, they saw a crowd of people surrounding Raine as she used her Revitalize magic to heal the wounds of the person on the ground. They could tell what it was, the spell having been used multiple times to heal their own wounds in battle against Monsters, Cruxis and other forces that wished to harm them.

Collete clasped her hands, and looked at Lloyd, her face full of concern, her Cruxis crystal at her throat glinting on the sunlight, "Will the person be ok Llyod?" Llyod who was busy trying to look over the people looked at her, "I hope so…."

Grunting, Llyod then turned and said to his two friends, "Stay here I'll be right back." Pushing his way through the people who had gathered, he made his way to the front and stopped suddenly. There, in front of Raine as she worked on her, lay Sheena. Unconscious. Raine, as soon as she saw Llyod stopped working looked up at him and said, "She's going to be ok…" Lloyd nodded mutely but then felt his body go numb as it did in his dream. Looking her over, he could tell she had been hurt bad, her body was cut in multiple places, and she had been battered pretty severely. But worse still was the knowledge that whatever had done this to her had been strong, very strong. Her ability to summon made her very formidable, yet whatever had done this was quick, and thorough, making it so she probably had not time to summon.

"Did…she say anything Professor, like who did this?" Lloyd choked out.

Raine nodded and looked at him, her face a mixture of worry, and concern, "Just one word…and you won't like it…"

"Tell me!" Llyod found himself nearly yelling at Raine, but Raine looked at him coolly like she always had, not taken aback by his sudden outburst.

"Cruxis." She replied calmly, folding her arms into her lap, "she said Cruxis."

(to be continued!)

(More to come later! Hope everyone enjoys this first chapter. R&R if you like, flames will be laughed at :D I dunno how many chapters this will be but I hope everyone liked this opening, so I'll write more within a week or so depending upon reviews n what not if its liked and so on. Enjoy!)


	2. Friends and Decisions

Child of Darkness

Chp 2: Friends and Decisions

"_Unto him, allies shall be called.  
Before his might, enemies shall be felled.  
Blood red wings, the sign of Worlds Ended."_

_Prophecies of Mithos, Book of Derris-Kharlan_

It had been nearly three days since Sheena had collapsed outside the schoolhouse of Iselia village. In that time, Lloyd, Raine and Genis had taken time to care and look after their injured friend, who they had brought to Dirks house. Dirk had quickly grasped the situation and had ushered them up to Lloyd's room where they had made her comfortable, and Lloyd spent the remaining days at Raine and Genesis house when he wasn't looking after Sheena. During this time Raine had dismissed school and made sure to check up on Sheena as well, her own features just as worried at times, much like Lloyds and Genis'.

It was late in the evening, when Lloyd had taken his time at watch to look after Sheena that he had dozed off, his head resting in his hands, which he had laid out next to the young ninjas resting form. As he rested there, the young female let out a small moan and then opened her eyes. Looking around she surveyed her surroundings cautiously then sat up; wincing slightly as she felt the bandages on her body that Raine had trussed her up in. Wrinkling her nose she also noticed that she was also undressed. A sound had her turn and as she looked down, she smiled a little, seeing Lloyds sleeping form beside her, his floppy brown hair down over his face as his back rose and fell with his soft breathing.

"Lloyd." she breathed softly, her hand tenderly reaching out and shaking him gently.

He let out a rather loud grunt and muttered stubbornly, "Not yet dad…I'm tired." His hand reached up and gently shoved hers away, his body reacting on the instinct of a well-trained swordsman.

Sheena couldn't help but laugh slightly, then winced as she clutched her side again. The bruises were still there, but it wasn't just the pains of her wounds that bothered her. Memories of Mizuho came flooding back and she clutched at her head. She remembered the screams of her people as they were cut down, and the flames, and of her grandfather falling at the hands of…no she wouldn't let herself remember. Shaking her head she forced the memories from her mind for the time and looked at Lloyd again, her heart still heavy from the experiences that came flooding back. She hoped that maybe if she just focused on the young man sleeping before her, she knew her pain would fade for the time being, as it always had when he had pushed and constantly encouraged him on their journey to save Tethe'alla.

"He looks so peaceful." She murmured as she watched the young swordsman some more, taking the time to study his face and features in detail. She couldn't help but notice upon scrutiny just how much he looked like Kratos. The eye line, bridge of the nose, his shaped lips, and the hairstyle, definitely the hairstyle was the same. If she mentioned it, he would probably dismiss the idea, but she knew he did care for Kratos in his own way.

Gently she brushed some more hair from his face, as it had fallen back into his eyes as he moved slightly. She smiled a little and her heart skipped a beat as he murmured, "Sheena…" She cared for him deeply, but the boy was a dense fool, and she knew it. He was so determined and hardheaded that sometimes it cut off his common sense, his ideas being first and foremost on his mind, and no matter what she said, or hinted at, even during their journeys he always took the wrong way. _Lloyd, you can be so DAMN frustrating, you know that?_ She thought to herself, her brow furrowing slightly.

She scowled slightly as she continued to run a hand through his brown hair, as the memories of the journey to save the world came back. She remembered a specific conversation she had with him that was particularly frustrating, as the memories came flooding back again.

The group had made camp just outside Mizuho before she had returned, and she had been up late, her nervousness overwhelming her desire to eat OR sleep it seemed that night. As she had left her tent, she found Lloyd poking at the fire quietly with his sword, keeping it hot. He had been elected watch that night, and although he disliked missing out on sleep, he had agreed and stayed up.

_She had walked up to him and sat down across from him staring at the fire and he had looked at her, concern crossing his cheerful features. "Something wrong Sheena?" he asked her._

"_Hunh? Oh…um…no…" she looked at him and blushed a little, trying to hide the fact that she was glad he had asked. Something was wrong, and she definitely seemed worried, and worried sick, yet her tough outer demeanor prevented her from showing any weakness. This was especially true in front of Zelos, if he had caught anything like that he would have definitely put the moves on her, calling her his voluptuous hunny, or something she found equally demeaning._

_He looked at her then with a simple, "Oh, ok." Went back to poking at the fire._

_She had hesitated then asked quietly, trying to hide the fact she was still blushing due to the fact she liked being around him, and the fact they hadn't had any time to really be alone at all during the journey, "Do you know anything about others peoples culture? Y'know, other humans?"_

_He had looked at her again then smiled, and given her a goofy grin, "not much really, I tend to sleep through the Professors lectures." He had then rubbed the back of his head with his free hand and laughed, adding, "Its all too booky for me really, Genis is the smart one."_

_She had replied with a soft, "oh." Then looked at him again and said, "well in Mizuho, when people get married sometimes its arranged, y'know kind of like between good friends or upon request."_

_The question had been innocent but she found herself blushing furiously at what he said next. He had looked at her then blinked, a surprised look on his face as he reseathed his sword, "you mean, like between us?" he replied._

"_Th...That's not what I meant," she stammered, her face growing hotter as she held up her hand, "I just was saying…that it could be between friends sometimes, yes."_

_He had given her a blank look then tilted his head curiously, replying, "but we're friends aren't we? Wouldn't that mean we'd get married?"_

_All she could reply with as her tough side came to the surface was, "Urgh! Idiot!" And she had quickly retreated leaving Lloyd with a confused look on his face. She had to admit however, she found herself thinking about what he said as she lay in her tent listening to Raine sleep soundly next to her. She found herself blushing furiously, her face still heated. Eventually she had fallen asleep, but she couldn't shake the thoughts of Lloyd and what he had said from her mind._

It hadn't been the first or last time they had spoken such, when she first met him, he had let her join their group, saying she was cute, and she was welcome company despite having tried to kill him and Collete. He hadn't wanted to kill her, and that sense of compassion for all life-forms, weather a hopeless assassin who thought killing another was the only way to save Tethe'Alla, or a fallen hero who wept for his sister and would destroy for his own gain, had drawn her to him, like a moth to a Mizuho lantern flame. The feelings for Lloyd Irving had only become stronger as they had gone on their journey in search of Exspheres and she had hated to leave him, even if she was returning home to Mizuho. It didn't seem the same without him by her side.

However, there was one obstacle she knew would always be in her way: Colette Brunel. Lloyd seemed wound around her finger, dropping everything for her at a moments notice, and pushing all other concerns and fears aside when she was in trouble. It didn't seem fair to her that he would do anything for Colette yet; he failed to see her growing affection and love for him. He seemed only to see Colette.

She found herself suddenly, as she came back from her trip down memory lane, leaning down toward him, her lips hovering close to his when suddenly, his eyes opened. Sheena found herself sitting up quickly, blushing furiously, unaware that the blanket which had been around her fell down to her lap, revealing her bandaged torso and a lot of skin of her bust, more than her Mizuho Ninja garb showed for that matter.

Lloyd found himself staring at her, her dark eyes staring back into his own brown. He then suddenly turned beet red and laughed nervously as he said, "Um, Sheena?"

"Y…Yeah?" she replied nervously, the look of worry crossing her face. _Did he see what I was doing? _She thought to herself as she felt her cheeks redden even more as she found herself not really caring if he did.

He winced heavily and then replied as he quickly turned his back, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to stare!"

Sheena gawked as those words left his lips and she felt the blush leave her face and replaced it with a mix of frustration and fury as her tough and cool demeanor settled into its paces, once again covering up the shy, unsure Sheena. "Lloyd, you IDIOT!" she yelled at him as she quickly covered up, pulling the blankets around her "You are just as bad as Zelos was, you Peeping Tom!"

Lloyd winced at the mention of the title he had been given by her and the other girls at the Tethe'Alla hot springs shortly before their journey ended with the defeat of Mithos and the return of Yggdrasil, then shook his head quickly sputtering, as he was taken aback by her sudden anger, "B…but, I didn't…I mean you were sleeping…and Raine had to bandage your wounds and take off your clothes too…and It was my turn to watch you and…"

"Don't even start with me!" she found herself snapping at him, "Go downstairs while I change ok!" She rolled her eyes as he quickly did as she was told and found herself muttering, "Men…"

Before long Sheena had climbed out of bed and gotten dressed in her Ninja Garb. She could see Raine had patched it up, probably, and as she tied the sash around her midsection and into the bow, somewhat angrily as her frustration at Lloyd found its way to the surface. Suddenly footsteps could be heard coming up the stairs and Raine came through the door. Looking at Sheena she said evenly, "Lloyd came running down the stairs pretty quick a few minutes ago, his face was red from embarrassment, I haven't seen him that red since Collete first came to live in Iselia."

Sheena just huffed slightly and tugged at her sash-ribbon some more and muttered, "its nothing." Quickly she adjusted her undershirt so that it matched with her Ninja garb, showing off some of her cleavage like she liked it. She found that the garment like this was most comfortable, and maneuverable for a Ninja but it annoyed her how it made men gawk, and women whisper behind her back about "flaunting her assets." True, she rarely wore her Mizuho Kimono, but the garment was not meant for the battlefield, where she was more accustomed to being.

Raine smiled a little then grew serious again, replying, "Well, anyway, glad to see you're up and about and conscious, would you like something to eat I can have something made while I'm here."

Sheena hesitated for a second when Raine mentioned cooking, she knew she wasn't the greatest cook from her travels with the older woman, but she also how nasty with her temperament regarding cooking she could be. However, her stomach grumbling soon made up her mind for her and she replied, "Um, sure, I guess."

"Great!" Raine smiled as she made to head downstairs, "I'll have some Miso made up in a jiffy! Just you wait!" she then quickly went downstairs and she could hear her ask Dirk where he kept his cooking utensils. Sheena winced, Raine definitely had been eager to prove that she had gotten better, but somehow she doubted she would be able to stomach whatever Raine would make.

Sighing, Sheena found herself walking over to Lloyd's window and looking out. There she saw Noishe and Lloyd playing fetch. Lloyd would throw the stick he had and Noishe would fetch it. They had found out what Noishe was when they had gone to the Elven Village of Heimdale, yet he still treated the protozoan as a dog. Noishe didn't mind, in fact he seemed to enjoy the games they played, bounding after a little thing seemed to entertain the creature immensely.

Looking off to the left, Sheena saw Collete smiling and sitting on the grass, watching Lloyd and Noishe play, and frowned slightly. She seemed to be everywhere Lloyd was, clinging to him like a wide-eyed puppy. Sighing, she left the window as Collete got up and waked up to Lloyd and started talking to him, keeping really close her eyes shining with wonder and Sheen could swear, love, for Lloyd.

Heading downstairs, she saw Raine working over a pot, and as she sat down at the table, Dirk came over and handed her a small wood carving of her and her friends he must have carved when they had visited his house during their journey. "Carved it for ya me' self but I couldn't get it to yah before y'h left." he replied proudly, "what happened to ye after'all..I'm sorry Sheena." the Dwarfs face grew sad and a bit melancholic at the mention of what had happened to her village but Sheena shook her head and smiled slightly, mumbling, "Its ok Dirk."

The dwarf nodded and replied, "Well, jus like Lloyd ye'll always have a home here, remember that, Dwarven Vow #11: always help someone in need."

Sheena sighed again then looked at Dirk, and asked, "Dirk…why is Colette always hanging around Lloyd? I mean…I never understood why entirely…he never really spoke about how he came to Iselia to me or met her." She winced slightly trying to hide the hurt that laced her voice, her words coming out coolly and calmly, much like how Raine's would when she was lecturing Lloyd.

Dirk sighed then looked at her, then shook his head, replying, "If'n you be askin that to me, it's not right that I answer it, ask Lloyd, he might tell yeh."

Before Sheena could answer, Raine said in her all too rare cheerful voice, "its ready!" Sheen made a mental note to ask Lloyd later, as Raine handed her a bowl, that had something in it that resembled noodles but Sheena wasn't entirely sure. She sniffed at it hesitantly as Lloyd and Collete came in, Genis, who had just arrived from getting some supplies from Iselia's local market behind them. Looking over at Raine and Sheena he raised an eyebrow and said, "Wow, either your really hungry…or very brave Sheena."

Raine immediately scowled at her brother then said sternly, "Now Genis, Lloyd, have some too, you're both growing young men who need their nutrition."

Genis and Lloyd looked at each other, and genis sweat dropped and sputtered, "B..but sis! I..u..um already ate! Me and Lloyd had some sandwiches earlier and we're umm…stuffed!" He looked at Lloyd who looked at him blankly, "But Genis we did…" he replied. Before he could finish Genis gave him a quick kick in the shins.

"Ow what was that for Genis!" Lloyd looked at his elf-friend with surprise evident in his voice. He blinked, the innocent look on his face, the same innocent look that Sheena reminded herself that made him so damn frustrating, yet cute at the same time.

Raine answered quickly back before Genis could reply and sharply with, "No buts! And the next person who jokes about my cooking will be doing extra work at school!" she leveled her eyes on Lloyd and Genis coolly, both who quickly nodded in agreement and began to pretend hey were eating. Sheena suppressed a small giggle; they probably would feed it to Noishe the next chance they got. Colette who sat next to Lloyd smiled almost blankly as she ate the noodles, without any seeming care in the world. Genis blinked and looked at Collete saying as he continued to pretend to eat, "Collete, how on earth can you stomach sis' cooking?"

Colette closed her eyes and smiled as she replied, as Raine shot her brother another icy look, "its yummy, I like the Professors cooking!"

Raine smiled and nodded sagely, closing her eyes and folding her arms, "see at least Colette has some taste I can appreciate."

Genis just rolled his eyes and continued to pretend to eat, and Lloyd looked over at Sheena, as he ate slowly. She blushed slightly but hid it behind her bowl and said nothing in reply as she ate the noodles. Sure, they were right, Raine's cooking was not the best she had ever experienced, in fact at times it could almost be nauseating, but still, she was hungry and didn't care. In fact she earned some stares as she hungrily wolfed down the Miso.

When the group had finished eating (or pretending to eat for that matter) they sat around and joked for a while about the lighter times in their journey. Most of the incidents occurred when Zelos got slapped by a "hunnies" rejection, or got smacked by Raine when he made passes at her. Sheena studied Lloyds features as they talked about Zelos and she could see that although he masked it well behind a smile, the topic of the man he and the others had once trusted who then turned on them simply because he had been another misguided pawn of Mithos, still hurt. She could see it also in her other friends faces, they all had trusted him, her and Raine a little less, yet in his own way Zelos had become one of their best friends. He always was ready with a joke and a witty quip to lighten the situation and he always helped in making Colette and Presea feel better if they felt they were either a burden or were upset.

The laughter soon died down around the table and they looked at each other quietly then Lloyd, biting his lower lip then grimacing like had during the trip muttered, "Now Sheena…tell us about Cruxis…the ones that attacked Mizuho."

Sheena nodded, then sighed as she let the memories come flooding back.. This would be one long night she knew, and in the end, the pain that resided in her heart both for the people of Mizuho and her feelings for Lloyd that seemed that they might never ever be recognized or spoken of, would still be there. Still she took a deep breath as she began her tale.

(to be continued!)

(Next chapter, what happened to Mizuho? What is this about Cruxis' return? And what of Lloyds dream? Do they have something in common? Tune in for chapter 3 coming soon! And thanks all for the reviews, I really appreciate it: remember the more reviews the quicker I can bring out chapter 3, no this is NOT a desperate plea for reviews, just saying I appreciate the acknowledgements and will continue to write this story if people want me too :D anyways, tune in for more in maybe a day or two or sooner :D )

Edit: Oops! Sorry on the small typos on Shennas name and Colette's, forgive! I type quick so I tend to be a bit...accident prone (in other words I make some really LAME typos soemtimes laughs nervously) . I fixed em now and have reuploaded the chapter again, look for more later! And those looking for fluff right now, gotta wait abit more :P Remember Lloyds clueless, and Sheenas one tough chick, so, patience and thou shalt be rewarded! (at least what i derived from my playthrough of the game) Till next xhapter!

RyuDraconis


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